The Bank represents about 60pc of the market share in Djibouti in teras of loans and deposits
Red Sea Trade & Industry Bank (BCIMR) of Djibouti opened a representative office in Addis Abeba on February 26, 2015, which was marked with an inauguration at the Sheraton Addis Hotel in the presence of Jean Pierre Gianotti, the Bank’s director general.
BCIMR is a subsidiary of Bred Banque Populaire Group (BPCE group). The French banking group bought BCIMR from BNP Paribas in July 2007. BPCE owns 51pc of the bank whereas the Djibouti government has 33pc of the share and the remaining 16pc is owned by Yemeni bank. The Bank says in its website that it operates in all market segments such as personal, business, public sector and institutional, mainly in Djibouti, Somalia, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Sudan, Yemen, and UAE. BCIMR offers its customers loans and financing, deposit and cash management, payment, trade finance, local and international guarantees.
Specializing in Trade Finance, the BCIMR offers a wide range of services to banks that cover all banking operations related to the treatment of flows in relation to international trade, according to its website. The Bank gives services such as foreign exchange transactions, Letter of Credit (L/C), international guarantees, transfers and receptions of multi-funds (SWIFT, cheque, etc.). Currently, most of the private banks in Ethiopia are clients of BCIMR, according to Ahmed.
Ahmed Abdou Mohsein, the office representative in Ethiopia, says that most of the banks in Ethiopia have a correspondent banking relation with BCIMR. Among these banks are Abyssinia, Awash, Dashen and Wegagen. The representative office will help to communicate and manage delays and documents easily and quickly, said Atakilt Admasu, International Banking Director at Wegagen.
Furthermore, the office will also provide information and facilitate investment opportunities in Ethiopia for Djibouti investors as it advances its presence in Ethiopia, said Ahmed.
It took around three weeks to furnish and open the representative office, which is located along Africa Avenue in front DH-GEDA Tower, said Ahmed, who makes all the staff of the office together with a secretary. The office received its trade license in January 2015 from the Ministry of Trade. The representative office will help its clients to save their time and money, stated Ahmed. The Addis Abeba representative office will serve as an intermediate office where clients can communicate with the Bank without leaving the country, he explained.
The BCIMR represents an average of 60pc market share in Djibouti in terms of deposits and loans and 85% of signed commitments. It has funded large regional projects such as the electrical interconnection between Djibouti and Ethiopia in collaboration with the French Development Agency.
(Source: Addis Fortune)
